Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday mooted the idea of either withdrawing the ban on arrack or increasing the number of liquor vending licenses in a bid to cater to the needs of the alcohol-consuming people in rural areas.
Intervening during the discussion in the Legislative Assembly on the State budget, Mr. Siddaramaiah remarked, “the earlier government (JD (S)-BJP coalition) banned arrack on the grounds that it has ruined the finances of individual families and become the cause of sorrow for the women from poor families due to the alcoholism of their men folk. I had opposed the arrack ban then itself as it is not practical. As an impact of arrack ban, the consumption of liquor has more than doubled in rural areas. Now the two options before us is to either bring back arrack or increase the (vending) licenses of liquor.”
However, he left it to the House to think over the issue. “The poor will not shun their drinking habits just because the arrack is banned,” he observed.
Meanwhile BJP member Jagadish Kumar appealed to the government to consider the report of a legislature committee that had recommended providing reservation to Dalits while allotting vending licenses for liquor.